deadlier; deadliest
1
: likely to cause or capable of producing death
deadly poison
2
a
: aiming to kill or destroy : implacable
a deadly enemy
b
: highly effective
a deadly exposé
c
: unerring
a deadly marksman
d
: marked by determination or extreme seriousness
3
a
: tending to deprive of force or vitality
a deadly habit
b
: suggestive of death especially in dullness or lack of animation
deadly bores
a deadly conversation
4
: very great : extreme
deadliness
noun
Synonyms
Adjective
Adverb
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awful
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- desperately
- eminently
- enormously
- especially
- ever
- exceedingly
- exceeding
- extra
- extremely
- fabulously
- fantastically
- far
- fiercely
- filthy
- frightfully
- full
- greatly
- heavily
- highly
- hugely
- immensely
- incredibly
- intensely
- jolly
- majorly
- mightily
- mighty
- monstrous [chiefly dialect]
- mortally
- most
- much
- particularly
- passing
- rattling
- real
- really
- right
- roaring
- roaringly
- seriously
- severely
- so
- sore
- sorely
- spanking
- specially
- stinking
- such
- super
- supremely
- surpassingly
- terribly
- that
- thumping
- too
- unco
- uncommonly
- vastly
- very
- vitally
- way
- whacking
- wicked
- wildly
Examples of deadly in a Sentence
Adjective
the world's most deadly snake
a more deadly form of the disease
They launched a deadly attack.
Officers are allowed to use deadly force if necessary.
She shoots with deadly accuracy.
a basketball player with deadly aim
A deadly silence followed his question.
The two gang leaders are deadly enemies.
He spoke with deadly seriousness.
Adverb
I'm deadly serious about making an offer on the house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Hazem Balousha, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024
The survivor of the deadly crash, 23-year-old Scottsdale resident Valerie Stutterheim, suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the incident.
—Coleby Phillips, The Arizona Republic, 4 Apr. 2024
In 2022, Nicole Blackmon was about 15 weeks pregnant when her fetus was diagnosed with a deadly anomaly, according to the lawsuit.
—Melissa Chan, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Although the man was not harmed, Garcia still faced assault with a deadly weapon charges.
—James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Except the side effects for cicadas, a flying pest, are quite deadly.
—USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
Police investigate deadly shooting on North Lasalle Street April 3: About 6:30 a.m. officers were dispatched to the 800 block of North Lasalle Street near Michigan Road about a person shot.
—Indianapolis Star, The Indianapolis Star, 3 Apr. 2024
Costs are piling up from the deadly collision, and who is going to pay for it all remains a question.
—Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Avery had rolled out his deadly plans with all the guile and strategic know-how that his navy training had taught him.
—Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024
Antonio Planas, NBC News, 1 Feb. 2024
Pakistan launches deadly airstrikes in Iran Pakistan’s air force launched retaliatory airstrikes in Iran Thursday, killing at least nine people two days after Iran struck at separatist camps in Pakistan.
—Spencer Elliott, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2024
Some of the appointments — filmed on bare sets in clean, flat close-up, an aesthetic choice that stresses both their separation from reality and their plain emotional stakes — unfold in deadly earnest.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 25 Jan. 2024
Texas wildfires turn deadly and keep growing Wildfires in the Texas Panhandle turned deadly, as officials in the city of Borger confirmed one death yesterday afternoon.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 29 Feb. 2024
Measles is a highly contagious disease that can lead to complications and turn deadly, according to the CDC.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024
The High Desert State Prison investigative services unit, the CDCR deadly force investigation team and the Lassen County District Attorney’s Office are investigating the incident.
—Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 26 Jan. 2024
If new hardline measures are enacted, expect these Mexican cartels—some of the same ones that traffic deadly fentanyl into the U.S.—to turn eye-popping profits.
—TIME, 9 Jan. 2024
That, of course, led to the blind spot that helped make the Hamas attacks so deadly.
—Dahlia Scheindlin, Foreign Affairs, 29 Nov. 2023
Adjective
After another deadly night at Kuwait circle, there were two successful deliveries to the north, according to eyewitnesses and residents.
—Hazem Balousha, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024
The survivor of the deadly crash, 23-year-old Scottsdale resident Valerie Stutterheim, suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the incident.
—Coleby Phillips, The Arizona Republic, 4 Apr. 2024
In 2022, Nicole Blackmon was about 15 weeks pregnant when her fetus was diagnosed with a deadly anomaly, according to the lawsuit.
—Melissa Chan, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Although the man was not harmed, Garcia still faced assault with a deadly weapon charges.
—James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Except the side effects for cicadas, a flying pest, are quite deadly.
—USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
Police investigate deadly shooting on North Lasalle Street April 3: About 6:30 a.m. officers were dispatched to the 800 block of North Lasalle Street near Michigan Road about a person shot.
—Indianapolis Star, The Indianapolis Star, 3 Apr. 2024
Costs are piling up from the deadly collision, and who is going to pay for it all remains a question.
—Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Avery had rolled out his deadly plans with all the guile and strategic know-how that his navy training had taught him.
—Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024
Adverb
About 10 minutes later, the spree turned deadly, police said.
—Antonio Planas, NBC News, 1 Feb. 2024
Pakistan launches deadly airstrikes in Iran Pakistan’s air force launched retaliatory airstrikes in Iran Thursday, killing at least nine people two days after Iran struck at separatist camps in Pakistan.
—Spencer Elliott, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2024
Some of the appointments — filmed on bare sets in clean, flat close-up, an aesthetic choice that stresses both their separation from reality and their plain emotional stakes — unfold in deadly earnest.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 25 Jan. 2024
Texas wildfires turn deadly and keep growing Wildfires in the Texas Panhandle turned deadly, as officials in the city of Borger confirmed one death yesterday afternoon.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 29 Feb. 2024
Measles is a highly contagious disease that can lead to complications and turn deadly, according to the CDC.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024
The High Desert State Prison investigative services unit, the CDCR deadly force investigation team and the Lassen County District Attorney’s Office are investigating the incident.
—Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 26 Jan. 2024
If new hardline measures are enacted, expect these Mexican cartels—some of the same ones that traffic deadly fentanyl into the U.S.—to turn eye-popping profits.
—TIME, 9 Jan. 2024
That, of course, led to the blind spot that helped make the Hamas attacks so deadly.
—Dahlia Scheindlin, Foreign Affairs, 29 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'deadly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near deadly
Cite this Entry
“Deadly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deadly. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deadly
2 of 2 adverb1
: suggesting death
deadly pale
2
: to a very great degree
deadly dull
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